Cultural-Based Dispute Resolution in the Kankain Karkara Mananwir System of the Byak Community in Papua
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33506/js.v12i2.5258Keywords:
Kankain Karkara, Mananwir, Customary Dispute Resolution, Legal Pluralism, Byak CommunityAbstract
This study aims to examine the culturally based dispute resolution system known as Kankain Karkara, administered by the Mananwir customary institution within the Byak community in Biak, Papua, and to analyze its role in restoring social harmony amid the coexistence of formal and customary legal systems, including in disputes involving migrants.
This study uses a legal anthropology approach through participant observation and in-depth interviews with customary authorities and community members, both indigenous residents and migrants. The analysis is grounded in the framework of legal pluralism and the concept of semi-autonomous social fields to examine the relationship between state law and customary law in dispute resolution practices.
The novelty of this research lies in the finding that the Kankain Karkara system is not confined to homogeneous customary communities but operates as an inclusive and restorative mechanism capable of integrating migrants as subjects of dispute resolution through reconciliation processes based on local values. In addition, this study identifies the phenomenon of post-adjudication, in which disputes that have been formally decided by state courts continue to be processed through customary forums to achieve social certainty and the restoration of inter-family relations.
Findings show that the Kankain Karkara system operates through a tiered and restorative mechanism involving two levels of customary authority: Mananwir Keret, which addresses intra-clan disputes based on reputational–ethical authority, and Mananwir MNU, which functions as a mediator for inter-community and cross-identity disputes through structural–genealogical authority.
This study concludes that the coexistence of formal and customary justice systems Biak does not represent a jurisdictional conflict but rather a form of complementary functional differentiation, in which state courts provide procedural certainty, while Kankain Karkara delivers substantive justice through reconciliation and the restoration of social order.
References
Achmad, Harir, and Basuki Babussalam. “Legal Pluralism: Concept, Theoretical Dialectics, and Its Existence in Indonesia,.” Walisongo Law Review 6, no. 02 (2024). https://journal.walisongo.ac.id/index.php/walrev/article/view/25566.
Bedner, Adriaan, and Yance Arizona. “Adat in Indonesian Land Law: A Promise for the Future or a Dead End?” Asia Pacific Journal of Anthropology 20, no. 5 (2019): 416–34. https://doi.org/10.1080/14442213.2019.1670246.
Benda-Beckmann, K von. “Forum Shopping and Shopping Forums.” The Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law., 1981. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1080/07329113.2021.1996075.
Deki Demianus Korwa. “Wewenang Kankain Karkara Byak Dalam Menyelesaikan Delik Adat.” JurnaI Lmu Hukum Kyadiren 04 (2022): 1–10. https://doi.org/10.46924/jihk.v4i1.162.
Dwiatmoko, Anang, and Sutan Sorik. “PENGATURAN HAK ASASI MANUSIA DAN PELINDUNGAN HUKUM MASYARAKAT ADAT DI SEKTOR USAHA PERTAMBANGAN,” 2017. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.22146/mh.v35i1.6461.
Griffiths, J. “What Is Legal Pluralism?” The Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law 24, no. 18 (1986). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1080/07329113.1986.10756387.
Griffiths, John. “What Is Legal Pluralism?”.” Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law 18 (1986).
Harianto. “Nilai Keadilan Dalam Putusan Peradilan Adat Dan Peradilan Umum Di Papua.” Universitas Islam Negeri Alauddin Makassar, 2022. https://repositori.uin-alauddin.ac.id/25323/1/HARIANTO_80100218010.pdf.
Hariri, Achmad, and Basuki Babussalam. “LEGAL PLURALISM: CONCEPT, THEORETICAL DIALECTICS, AND ITS EXISTENCE IN INDONESIA.” Walisongo Law Review 6, no. 2 (2024): 146–70. https://doi.org/10.21580/walrev.2024.6.2.25566.
Hatch, Megan B., et all. “Boundary Spanners: A Critical Role for Enduring Collaborations between Indigenous Communities and Mainstream Scientists.” Cology and Society 28, no. 1 (2023). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-13887-280141.
Howard, Zehr. The Little Book of Restorative Justice. Intercourse, PA: Good Books, 2002.
Irianto, Sulistyowati. “Globalisasi Hukum Dalam Pluralisme Hukum Modern THE INDONESIAN JOURNAL OF SOCIO-LEGAL STUDIES ( IJSLS ) Globalisasi Hukum Dalam Pluralisme Hukum Modern” 4, no. 1 (2025). https://doi.org/10.54828/ijsls.2024v4n1.5.
Kathleen, Daly. Revisiting the Relationship between Retributive and Restorative Justice, in Restorative Justice: Philosophy to Practice, Ed. Heather Strang and John Braithwaite. Aldershot: Dartmouth, 2000. https://research-repository.griffith.edu.au/server/api/core/bitstreams/556a0124-a508-5758-8a58-e2c49b54b411/content.
Ktjong, kadir, Revie Katjong, and Rizky Katjong. Beberapa Aspek Dalam Antropologi Hukum. Inara Publisher, 2023.
Pradhani, Sartika Intaning. “Pendekatan Pluralisme Hukum Dalam Studi Hukum Adat: Interaksi Hukum Adat Dengan Hukum Nasional Dan Internasional.” Jurnal Hukum 4, no. 1 (2021): 81–124. https://ujh.unja.ac.id/index.php/home/article/view/224.
Purnama Nugraha, Erwin, Kismartini, and Retno Astuti Suno. “Peran Lembaga Masyarakat Adat (LMA) Suku Marind Dalam Penyelesaian Sengketa Tanah Ulayat Di Kota Merauke.” Jurnal Ilmiah Indonesia 06, no. 6 (2021). https://jurnal.syntaxliterate.co.id/index.php/syntax-literate/article/view/2916/2183.
Putusan Mahkamah Konstitusi Nomor 35/PUU-X/2012 (2013).
Sally Engle Merry. Human Rights and Gender Violence: Translating International Law into Local Justice. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2006.
Sulistyowati, Irianto. “Pluralisme Hukum Sebagai Suatu Konsep Dan Pendekatan Teoritis Dalam Prespektif Global.” Indonesia: Asslesi, 2022. https://asslesi.id/artikel/pluralisme-hukum-sebagai-suatu-konsep-dan-pendekatan-teoretis-dalam-perspektif-global/#.
Tamanaha, B. Z; Understanding Legal Pluralism: Past to Present, Local to Global. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2017.
Undang Undang Republik Indonesia Nomor 3 Tahun 2024 tentang Perubahan Kedua atas Undang Undang Nomor 6 Tahun 2014 tentang Desa, Pub. L. No. 3 (2024).
Utama, Tody S J, Rikardo Simarmata, Jacqueline A C Vel, and Adriaan W Bedner. “New Ways of Teaching Adat ( Customary ) Law at Indonesian Law Schools New Ways of Teaching Adat ( Customary ) Law at Indonesian Law Schools.” The Indonesian Journal of Socio-Legal Studies 4, no. 1 (2024). https://doi.org/10.54828/ijsls.2024v4n1.2.
Webber, Jeremy, Val Napoleon, Mireille Fournier, and Borrows John. “Sally Engle Merry, Legal Pluralism, and the Radicalization of Comparative Law.” Canadian Journal of Law and Society 30, no. 1 (2024): 1–24. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/canadian-journal-of-law-and-society.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Bruri Marwano Wutwensa, Nisrawanty Lembang
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
